Polling stations opened as country shuts down all non-essential shops and services
French voters were urged to turn out to vote in the first round of municipal elections, hours after a national shutdown of all non-essential shops and services.
Polling stations opened on Sunday as planned despite calls for the two-round vote to be postponed as the coronavirus spread.
On Saturday evening, the prime minister, douard Philippe, announced the country was moving into stage 3 of its response to the coronavirus emergency and ordered a partial lockdown, including the closure of cafs, bars, restaurants and cinemas.
Food shops, tobacconists, pharmacies and public transport will remain open, Philippe said, but transport ministers warned services would be reduced to a minimum this week to try to contain the spread of the virus.
French schools and colleges have shut down indefinitely and people are advised to work from home where possible and avoid unnecessary journeys.
Q&A
How can I protect myself from the coronavirus outbreak?
The World Health Organization is recommending that people take simple precautions to reduce exposure to and transmission of the coronavirus, for which there is no specific cure or vaccine.
The UN agencyadvisespeople to:
- Frequently wash their hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or warm water and soap
- Cover their mouth and nose with a flexed elbow or tissue when sneezing or coughing
- Avoid close contact with anyone who has a fever or cough
- Seek early medical help if they have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, and share their travel history with healthcare providers
- Avoid direct, unprotected contact with live animals and surfaces in contact with animals when visiting live markets in affected areas
- Avoid eating raw or undercooked animal products and exercise care when handling raw meat, milk or animal organs to avoid cross-contamination with uncooked foods.
Despite a surge in sales of face masks in the aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak, experts are divided over whether they can prevent transmission and infection. There is some evidence to suggest that masks can help prevent hand-to-mouth transmissions, given the large number of times people touch their faces. The consensus appears to be that wearing a mask can limit but not eliminate the risks, provided it is used correctly.
The decision to shut down non-essential public places came as France reported 4,499 confirmed cases, including 91 deaths, according to the national health agency, Sant Publique France.
At polling stations, voters were advised to keep a social distance of one metre apart, to bring their own pens and to disinfect their hands before marking their voting paper. Priority was given to elderly and vulnerable voters.
At midday, participation was 18.38%, five percentage points lower than at the same point during the last municipal elections in 2014.
Philippe voted from Le Havre, where is standing for election as mayor. In Paris, the former president Nicolas Sarkozy and the current city mayor, Anne Hidalgo, were among the first to vote. President Emmanuel Macron was expected to vote in his home town at Le Touquet at lunchtime.
Anthony Wimbush, a British company director based in Paris, said his local polling station in east of Paris was quiet. Everyone was keeping a metre apart and if youd forgotten a pen, as I had, they were offering disinfected ones. I saw some people wearing gloves but didnt see any masks, he said.
At the local market, Wimbush said the food stalls were operating as normal, but police closed down a flower stall, considered non-essential. The normally busy Champs lyses in Paris was deserted.
One of the most contested municipal battles is in Paris, where opinion polls showed the Socialist Hidalgo remains favourite, closely followed by the mainstream right candidate, Rachida Dati, with Agns Buzyn, the candidate for the centrist government party, LREM, trailing in third place.
Elisabeth Borne, the transport minister, said long distance public transport services would be slowly phased out and that people should avoid all unnecessary journeys.
Our absolute objective is to slow down the spread of the virus to enable the health services to deal with it in the best way possible, Borne said.
Jean Baptiste Djebbari, the transport secretary, added that 80% of the Mtro in Paris and 100% of buses and trams would run on Monday but services would be slowly reduced over the week. Seven out of 10 intercity and TGV services would run on Monday, reducing to half by the end of next week.
Djebbari called for discipline and good civic behaviour.
About 47.7 million people, including 330,000 citizens from other EU countries living in France, have the right to vote. Britons can no longer vote in France since the UKs departure from the EU on 31 January.
Polling stations close at 8pm French time (7pm GMT). The second round of the elections is due to be held next Sunday.
Original Article : HERE ;
from MetNews https://metnews.pw/french-people-urged-to-vote-in-local-elections-amid-coronavirus-lockdown/
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